Racing for the Roses - History of Kentucky Derby

Whether it takes the form of chilled
mint juleps or the trademark phrase “And they're off”,
there are few American sporting events with the
visibility or popularity of the Kentucky Derby. The
longest running annual horse race in the United States,
the Derby has transcended sports to become a true icon
of Americana. Like any other event, the Kentucky Derby
has undergone various changes of the course of its
history. This paper looks at the history behind the
inauguration and early growth of the Derby before
tracing its evolution through the media and other
important milestones in its lifetime.

The Kentucky Derby's long, storied
history began in 1872 with a trip by Meriwether Lewis
Clark (ASSE May 7011). In that year, Clark – the
grandson of William Clark of Lewis and Clark fame –
traveled to Europe. While in England, Clark visited the
Epsom Derby a well-known race which had been run since
1780 (IMSA 2007: 16). According to John Trowbridge's
history of the Kentucky Derby published in 2011, after
leaving England, Clark journeyed to Paris, France where
he became familiar with the French Jockey Club (7). In
1863, that club of amateur enthusiast first organized
the Grand Prix de Paris at Longchamps (Trowbridge 2011,
7). By the time of Clark's visit just 9 years later, the
even was already referred to as the greatest race in
France (Trowbridge 2011, 7). Inspired by what he had
seen in Europe, Clark returned to Kentucky determined to
develop similar spectacles. Sports historian John
Nauright notes that his first step was joining together
with other local gentlemen to organize the Louisville
Jockey Club (2012, 257). The club began working to raise
money for a permanent racetrack. A generous gift by
Clark's relatives John and Henry Churchill provided the
necessary land as well as a name for the track –
Churchill Downs (Trowbridge 2011, 7). However, the track
was not officially called Churchill Downs until 1937 – a
moniker that has persisted ever since (Horse Race
Betting 2009). In 1875, just three years after Clark's
initial trip to England, his Louisville Jockey Club
sponsored the first ever Kentucky Derby (Trowbridge
2011, 7).

Early on, the Kentucky Derby brought
excitement to horse-racing, but its development was not
without challenges. Even something as basic as the
race's distance underwent changes during the first
several years. The length of the first Derby in 1875 was
1.5 miles or 2.4 kilometers (IMSA 2011, 16). That
distance was likely the result of Clark's experience in
England as the Epsom Derby was also a 1.5 mile race
(Trowbridge 2011, 7). Eleven years later in 1896, the
race coordinators shortened the distance to its current
1.25 miles – 2 kilometers (IMSA 2011, 16). As mentioned
previously, the first Kentucky Derby took place in 1875
in front of a cheering crowd of 10,000 spectators
(Trowbridge 2011, 7). Records show that the field that
year was made up of 15 three year old thoroughbreds
(Trowbridge 2011, 7). That precedent established the
tradition of the Derby as a race for the country's
premier three year old thoroughbreds (Trowbridge 2011,
7). Current Kentucky Historical Society records list
jockey Oliver Lewis as the winner of that initial race
riding Aristides (2016). Aristides was trained by the
renowned trainer and future Hall-of-Famer Ansel
Williamson (National Museum of Racing 2016) After
winning the Kentucky Derby, he went on to take 2nd place
at the Belmont Stakes behind the winner Calvin (NYRA
June 8, 2013).

Oliver Lewis, the winning jockey, was
one of the premier jockeys of the time – part of a large
group of prominent African-American jockeys in
post-Emancipation America (Kentucky Historical Society
2016). Early on, African-American jockeys were welcomed
and even celebrated by the horse-racing community. In
fact, 15 of the first 28 jockeys who won the Kentucky
Derby were black (Kentucky Historical Society 2016).
Regrettably, that situation did not last. The Supreme
Court ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson institutionalized
segregation in 1896, and the subsequent unionization of
white jockeys focused on pushing minorities out of the
sport (Kentucky Historical Society 2016). According to
official records Kentucky Historical Society records,
the last African-American jockey to win the Kentucky
Derby was Jimmy Winkfield in 1902 (Kentucky Historical
Society 2016). From 1921 – 2000 the Derby did not
feature a single African-American jockey (Kentucky
Historical Society 2016). Marlon St. Julien broke that
79 year streak when he finished 7th on Curule (Kentucky
Historical Society 2016). Despite the initial popularity
of the Kentucky Derby, the events organizers faced
serious financial difficulties in the early years. In
1902, Colonel Matt Winn – a local businessman – created
a business syndicate for the specific purpose of
acquiring the facility (IMSA 2007, 16). Under Winn's
leadership, the Derby developed into the pre-eminent
race for 3 year old thoroughbred horses in North
America. The tradition of rewarding the winning horse
with roses was actually not added until 1896, and it was
not until 1925 that the race was officially dubbed the
“Run for the Roses” (IMSA 2007, 16).

After the acquisition by Colonel
Winn's syndicate, the Kentucky Derby began to see a
rapid growth in its popularity. A major factor in that
growth was the decision by owners of successful Derby
horses to other popular races – specifically the
Preakness States in Baltimore and the Belmont Stakes in
New York. While both of those events preceded the Derby
– According to Bert Sugar and Cornell Richardson's 2003
volume Horse Racing: An Inside Look at the Sport of
Kings Belmont was first run in 1867 and the Preakness
five years later in 1872 – the Kentucky Derby quickly
caught up in terms of prestige and importance (163). It
was not until 1919 that a single horse managed to win
all three events in the same year. John Nauright's 2012
book Sports Around the World confirms that in 1919, Sir
Barton became the first horse to accomplish the feat
today known as the Triple Crown (Nauright 2012, 258).
However, the term Triple Crown did not enter common
usage until 11 years later. Bennett Liebman writes that
in 1930, Gallant Fox became the second horse to win all
three events and was labeled the Triple Crown champion
(2016). The exact origins of the phrase are not clear.
According to some sources, Charles Hatton – a
sportswriter for the New York Times – introduced the
label in his writeup of Gallant Fox's victory (Nauright
2012, 258). However, other historians have argued that
the phrase has been used as early as 1894 (Liebman
2016). The designation of a Triple Crown had a long
history in England where it referred to a horse that won
the Two Thousand Guineas, the English Derby, and the St.
Leger (Liebman 2016). Although Hatton may not have been
responsible for the origins of the Triple Crown, his
writings almost certainly deserve some credit for
popularizing the phrase.

The following year, the date of the
Kentucky Derby was permanently moved from an
undetermined date in mid-May to the first Saturday in
May (Nauright 2012, 258). This move coincided with the
increased popularity of the idea of a Triple Crown
winner by allowing for a consistent schedule. After the
change, the Kentucky Derby was the first race followed
by the Preakness and finally the Belmont Stakes (Nauright
2012, 258). An article by Scott Jagow last year notes
that prior to 1931, the Preakness stakes had actually
preceded the Derby 11 times since 1875. On two occasions
– May 12, 1917 and May 13, 1922 – the races actually
occurred on the exact same day (Jagow June 12, 2013).
Similarly, the Belmont Stakes occurred before the
Preakness 11 times before the order of the races was
permanently set (Jagow June 12, 2013). Including Sir
Barton and Gallant Fox, only 11 horses have ever won the
Triple Crown although 22 other horses have won the first
two legs at the Derby and Preakness Stakes (Horse Racing
Nation 2013). According to the Kentucky Derby Museum in
2008, the last Triple Crown winner came in 1978 when
Affirmed swept all three races.

As with any major sporting event, over
the last century the media coverage associated with the
Kentucky Derby has evolved dramatically. Prior to 1925,
the only means of obtaining live results for the race
was to actually be in attendance at the track. That all
changed on May 16, 1925 when the Derby was broadcast
live over the radio for the first time (McAdam April 30,
2010). Thomas McAdam's article in the Louisville
Examiner on April 30, 2010 notes that the broadcast was
originated by the local radio station WHAS. The signal
was also picked up by the more notable WGN in Chicago
(Fink & Coughlin 1961). All told, about 5-6 million
listeners tuned in to hear Flying Ebony claim first
place according to William Cummings history of WHAS
radio published in May 7012 (70). In the years after
that, the radio presence grew rapidly with NBC
introducing the first nationwide live radio broadcast of
the race less than ten years later (Cummings May 7012,
70).

The next major step for Derby media
coverage was the leap to moving picture. On May 7, 1949,
the Kentucky Derby was broadcast on television for the
first time (Nicholson 2012). Sports authority James
Nicholson recounted in 2012 how WAVE TV – a local
Louisville NBC affiliate headed up the broadcast which
aired live only in the Louisville area . As a
consequence very few viewers were actually able to watch
when Ponder won the 75th edition of the Derby as a 16 –
1 longshot (Nicholson 2012). After the limited local
live broadcast, the film reels were sent to the national
NBC studio which broadcasted the event nationally (Faded
Signals January 18, 2013). The effort to televise the
Derby was also significant as it utilized cameras with
zoom lenses for the first time ever (Seacoast Online
August 21, 2013).

In 1952, the public exposure of the
Kentucky Derby was widened even further with the first
national live television coverage of the race in its
history (ESPN News October 4, 1999). This time, it was a
CBS affiliate, WHAS-TV, which led organized the
broadcast (Nicholson 2012). According to Nicholson, at
the time it was believed to be the most expensive
half-hour of broadcasting in television history (2012).
The significant investment paid off as the broadcast
attracted between 10 and 15 million viewers (Nicholson
2012). Prior to the event, critics raised concerns that
live coverage of the race would decrease actual
attendance and betting on Derby. However, those fears did not
come to fruition as the Derby continued to attract
sell-out crowds and ever increasing amounts of wagers
(Nicholson 2012). If anything, television may have
raised the Derby's popularity by bringing it directly
into households across America.

Over the last 138 years, the Kentucky
Derby has seen countless notable moments, but a few
stand out above the rest. In 1954, the total purse for
the event exceeded $100,000 for the first time in the
race's history (Nauright 2012, 258). The total prize
pool has continued to grow since then reaching a hefty
$2 million in 2005 according to an ESPN article by Bill
Finley on January 10, 2005. In 1968, Dancer's Image was
disqualified making him the first and so far only winner
with that ignoble distinction (Nauright 2012, 258). The
disqualification resulted after post-race urine testing
revealed traces of the banned substance phenylbutazone (Nauright
2012, 258). After a lengthy legal battle by the horse's
owners, the championship for the year was awarded to the
runner-up – Forward Pass. Ironically, the rules of the
Derby were later changed to legalize phenylbutazone (Nauright
2012, 258).

The Kentucky Derby broke the gender
barrier in 1970 when Diane Crump became the first female
jockey to ride in the race. An article by Sheena
McKenzie for CNN in 2012 underscored the reality that
while her result in the race was not particularly
remarkable – finishing 15th out of 18 horses – her role
in bringing women to the forefront of horseracing later
won her a place in the Hall of Fame. According to
sportswriter Ron Flatter in 1999, Secretariat set the
fastest time in the 1 ¼ mile track's history in 1973.
His run of 1 minute 59.4 seconds broke the nine year old
record set by Northern Dancer in 1964 (Flatter 1999).
Making Secretariat's run even more astounding was the
fact that his times were shorter in each succeeding
quarter mile – a feat that has never been matched
(Greater Louisville Chamber of Commerce March 2013). In
fact, the only other horse to finish the Derby in under
two minutes was Monarchos who finished the course in 1
minute 59.97 seconds in 2001 (Greater Louisville Chamber
of Commerce March 2013).

More recently, jockeys riding in the
Derby were only allowed to wear corporate logos in 2004
after a court order overturned the race's longstanding
ban on such symbols (Liebman 2004, 1). According to an
article by Albany Law School Professor Bennett Liebman
in 2004, Derby organizers argued that the prohibition
was necessary to protect the integrity of horse racing,
but the court disagreed (2004, 2). While there are
potential legal future legal questions such as an
owner's ability to dictate the logo worn by a jockey,
for now the basic issue has been settled (Liebman 2004,
4). An article by Alison Fox for Southern Gaming notes
that when the purse was expanded to $2 million in 2005
the number of horses receiving a share of the prize was
also expanded to include the 5th place finisher (2016).
At present, the race uses a typical prize distribution
system which gives 62% of the purse to first place, 20%
to second place, 10% to third place, and 5% to fourth,
leaving 3% for fifth place (Fox 2016). In 2010, Calvin
Borel became the first jockey in Derby history to win
three out of four consecutive races (Greater Louisville
Chamber of Commerce March 2013).

The Kentucky Derby has come a long way
since that first race in 1875. Some changes, like the
disappearance of African-American jockeys for 79 years,
are far from progress . Overall however, the Derby has
worked to move forward. The introduction of the Triple
Crown award and live television coverage are just two
ways in which the race has permeated the public
consciousness. With a recently expanded prize pool, it
seems likely that the Kentucky Derby is likely to
continue attracting jockeys and owners vying for the
blanket of roses as they seek to join Secretariat in
immortal racing lore.

Works Cited

American Society of Safety Engineers
(ASSE). "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports."
Professional Safety. May 7011

Cummings, William. “Groping in the
Dark: An Early History of WHAS Radio.” Submitted in
fulfillment of the requirements for a Master of Arts
degree from the University of Louisville. May 7012.

Trowbridge, John. “The History of the
Kentucky National Guard in Support of the Kentucky
Derby.” Kentucky National Guard History. 2011

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